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[Alpha Biz= Kim Jisun] Oasis Market, a South Korean fresh grocery delivery company, is facing backlash for workforce restructuring measures taken shortly after being named the final preferred bidder to acquire struggling e-commerce platform TMON, which is currently under court-led rehabilitation.



According to retail industry sources on June 15, Oasis notified all non-sales staff in early May of a mandatory reassignment to product planning (MD) roles while also opening applications for voluntary resignation. Employees were reportedly given only a few hours to decide. As of the end of May, nearly 50 of the approximately 140 remaining employees had left the company through voluntary resignation—many of whom had been reassigned from non-sales roles.



Some of the departed staff have accused Oasis of breaching its employment guarantee commitments and conducting a de facto layoff. They expressed deep disappointment that such restructuring occurred less than a month after the company secured court approval to proceed with the acquisition under the condition that it would guarantee employment for five years.



Oasis entered into a conditional investment agreement to acquire TMON in March and was selected as the final preferred bidder by the Seoul Bankruptcy Court in April. The acquisition terms include a payment of KRW 11.6 billion (approx. USD 8.4 million) and an additional KRW 6.5 billion (approx. USD 4.7 million) in operational funds, with a five-year employment guarantee for TMON staff.



The company has also faced criticism for requiring all employees to undergo mandatory logistics center training, intended to familiarize them with Oasis’s in-house retail model, which differs from TMON’s open marketplace format. Critics argue the training was implemented without adequate employee consent. Oasis has denied claims of intentional downsizing, stating that the measures are part of efforts to stabilize TMON’s platform and resume operations swiftly.



TMON is scheduled to hold a meeting of stakeholders on June 20 at the Seoul Bankruptcy Court to review and vote on its court-submitted rehabilitation plan. For the plan to pass, it must receive support from two-thirds of unsecured creditors and three-quarters of secured creditors by debt volume.



A key challenge remains persuading major creditors. Of the KRW 11.6 billion to be provided by Oasis, only KRW 10.2 billion will be used for debt repayment—covering just 0.8% of TMON’s total outstanding debt, estimated at KRW 1.2 trillion—making creditor approval uncertain.

 

 

 

 

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